Passenger traffic at DXB rises to near-record eight million in July

Dubai International (DXB) recorded its second busiest month on record for passenger traffic in July with over eight million passengers, according to the monthly traffic report issued by operator Dubai Airports.

Passenger numbers in July totalled 8,065,789 compared to 7,616,792 handled in July 2016, a robust growth of 5.9 per cent. DXB welcomed 51,120,057 passengers during the first seven months of the year, up 6.2 per cent compared to 48,124,043* passengers, recorded during the same period last year.

South America was the fastest growing region in July with traffic surging 59 per cent, followed by Asia at 20 per cent – with China and Thailand as top contributors to traffic from the region, Eastern Europe at 16.3 per cent and Africa which grew by 9.1 per cent.

India retained its position as the top destination country with 1,028,508 passengers, followed by the UK (610,151 passengers), and Saudi Arabia (573,170 passengers). The most popular destinations served from DXB by traffic volume were London, followed by Kuwait, Mumbai, Bangkok and Riyadh.

Flight movements during July reached 34,181, down 4.7 per cent compared to 35,8864* movements recorded during July 2016. Year to date flight movements totalled 240,179 compared to 243,832* movements recorded during the same period last year, a contraction of 1.5 per cent. With DXB’s ratio of wide-bodied aircraft continuing to drive airport efficiency, passengers per movement peaked to a record high of 243 during July, up 10.1 per cent compared to 220 in July 2016.

DXB recorded a surge in cargo with freight totalling 213,258 tonnes in July, up 5 per cent compared to 203,153 tonnes recorded during the corresponding month last year. During the first seven months of 2017, DXB handled a total of 1,516,169 tonnes of cargo compared to 1,485,177 tonnes during the same period in 2016, an increase of 2.1 per cent.

“We have started the second half of the year on a very positive note and with the Islamic festival of Eid Al Adha coinciding with the summer rush later this month, the upward trend is expected to remain strong in the third quarter,” said Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports.

Analyst Saj Ahmad commented: “Dubai international's stunning performance in July underscores the strength and pull of the hub and city, on the back of Ramadan ending and coinciding with the start of the peak summer period.

“Led by Emirates' continued rapid organic expansion and greater route proliferation by flydubai, Dubai International is well on the way to cementing another record breaking year and expands it's leadership as the world's busiest international gateway.”

Ahmad added: “Going forward, the airport is going to have to further address drone disruption as well as effectively compete with neighbouring Dubai World Central for cargo traffic, particularly as flydubai moves there later this year.”

Dubai International (DXB) has registered yet another month of record passenger traffic with 8.2 million passengers welcomed in August, according to the monthly traffic report issued today by operator Dubai Airports.